[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Commissioners of the Township of
South Fayette as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Fire prevention — See Ch. 155.
[Adopted 2-19-2001 by Ord. No. 2-2001]
The Township Manager, or such officials as the Township Board of Commissioners
may designate, (designated official) is hereby appointed as the designated
official who is authorized to carry out all responsibilities and duties stated
herein.
No insurance company, association or exchange (hereinafter, the insuring
agent) doing business in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania shall pay a claim
of a named insured for the fire damage to a structure located within the Township
of South Fayette where the amount recoverable for the fire loss to the structure
under all policies exceeds $7,500, unless the insuring agent is furnished
by the designated official with a township certificate pursuant to the Fire
Insurance Escrow Law,[1] as amended, and unless there is compliance with the Fire Insurance
Escrow Law, as amended, and the provisions of this chapter.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 40 P.S. § 638.
A.
Pursuant to the Fire Insurance Escrow Law, as amended,
the designated official shall issue a certificate indicating that there are
no delinquent taxes, assessments, penalties or user charges against real property,
including the amount of the total costs, if any, certified to the Treasurer
that have been incurred by a municipality for the removal, repair or securing
of a building or other structure on the property. For the purposes of this
subsection, the municipality shall certify to the Treasurer the total amount,
if any, of such costs. Where there are delinquent taxes, assessments, penalties
or user charges against the property (municipal claims), or there are expenses
which the township has incurred as a cost for the removal, repair or securing
of a building or other structure on the property (collectively, municipal
expenses), the designated official of the township shall immediately render
a bill for such work, if said person has not already done so. Upon written
request of the named insured and the date of receipt specifying the tax description
of the property, the name and address of the insurer and the date of the receipt
by the insurer of a loss report of the claim, the Treasurer shall furnish
a certificate within 14 working days after the request, to the insurer, (or
at his discretion an oral notice confined in writing) either:
B.
A tax, assessment, penalty and user charger shall become
delinquent at the time and on the date a lien could otherwise have been filed
against the property by the municipality under applicable law. The insuring
agent may pay the claim of the named insured; provided, however, that if the
loss agreed upon by the named insured and the insuring agent equals or exceeds
60% of the aggregate limits of liability on all fire policies covering the
building restructure, the following procedures must be followed pursuant to
the Fire Insurance Escrow Law, as amended:
(1)
The insuring agent shall transfer from the insurance
proceeds to the designated official of the township in the aggregate of $2,000
for each $15,000 of a claim and for each fraction of that amount of a claim;
this subsection is to be applied such that if the claim is $15,000 or less,
the amount transferred to the township shall be $2,000.
(2)
If, at the time of a proof of loss agreed to between
the named insured and the insuring agent, the name insured has submitted a
contractor's signed estimate of the costs of removing, repairing or securing
the building or other structure, the insuring agent shall transfer to the
township from the insurance proceeds the amount specified in the estimate.
(3)
The transfer of proceeds shall be on a pro rata basis
by all companies, associations or exchanges insuring the building or other
structure.
(4)
After the transfer, the named insured may submit a contractor's
signed estimate of the costs of removing, repairing or securing the building
or other structure, and the designated official shall return the amount of
the funds transferred to the township in excess of the estimate to the named
insured, if the township has not commenced to remove, repair or secure the
building or other structure.
(5)
Upon receipt of proceeds under this section, the township
shall perform the following:
(a)
The designated official shall place the proceeds in a
separate fund to be used solely as security against the total costs of removing,
repairing or securing the building or structure, which are incurred by the
township. Such costs shall include, without limitation, any engineering, legal
or administrative costs incurred by the township in connection with such removal,
repair or securing of the building or any proceedings related thereto.
(b)
It is the obligation of the insuring agent when transferring
the proceeds to provide the township with the name and address of the named
insured. Upon receipt of the transferred funds and the name and address of
the named insured, the designated official shall contact the named insured,
certify that the proceeds have been received by the township and notify the
named insured that the procedures under this subsection shall be followed.
(c)
When repair, removal or securing of the building or other
structure has been completed in accordance with all applicable regulations
and orders of the township, and the required proof of such completion received
by the designated official, and if the township has not incurred any costs
for repair, removal or securing of the building or other structure, the fund
shall be returned to the named insured. If the township has incurred costs
for repair, removal or securing of the building or other structure, the costs
shall be paid from the fund, and if excess funds remain, the township shall
transfer the remaining funds to the named insured.
[1]
Pay to the Treasurer, for reimbursement to the township
general fund, the amount of the township expenses paid by the township.
(d)
To the extent that interest is earned on proceeds held
by the township pursuant to this section and not returned to the named insured,
such interest shall belong to the township. To the extent that proceeds are
returned to the named insured, interest earned on such proceeds shall be distributed
to the named insured at the time that the proceeds are returned.
(6)
Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the
ability of the township to recover any deficiency. Furthermore, nothing in
this subsection shall be construed to prohibit the township and the named
insured from entering into an agreement that permits the transfer of funds
to the named insured if some other reasonable disposition of the damaged property
has been negotiated.
The Township of South Fayette may, by resolution, adopt procedures and
regulations to implement the Fire Insurance Escrow Law as amended, and this
article and may, by resolution, fix reasonable fees to be charged for municipal
activities or services provided pursuant to the Fire Insurance Escrow Law,
as amended, and this article, including, but not limited to, issuance of certificates
and bills, performance of inspections and opening separate fund accounts.
Said fees shall be the responsibility of the named insured.
A.
Any person who has violated or knowingly permitted the
violation of the provisions of this article shall, upon being found liable
therefor in a civil enforcement proceeding commenced by the township, pay
a fine of not more than $1,000, plus all court costs, including reasonable
attorney's fees incurred by the township. No judgment shall commence
or be imposed, levied or be payable until the date of the determination of
a violation by the District Justice.
B.
If the violator neither pays the fine and court costs,
nor timely appeals the judgment, the township may enforce the judgment.
C.
All judgment, costs and reasonable attorney's fees
collected for violations of this article shall be paid over to the township.
This article section shall be construed to accomplish its purpose to
deter the commission of arson and related crimes, to discourage the abandonment
of property and to prevent urban blight and deterioration.
Upon adoption of this article, a copy of said article, the information
as required by 40 P.S. § 638(i), Fire Insurance Escrow Law, as amended,
shall be forwarded by South Fayette Township to the Pennsylvania Department
of Community Affairs.
